NRL Weekly Watch: Previewing Round 27

Broncos host Storm to open round

Brisbane will look to end their year on a high when they host the Storm at Suncorp Stadium on Thursday night.

Kotoni Staggs (quad), Payne Haas (foot), Brendan Piakura (ankle) and Xavier Willison (suspension) are all missing for the Broncos with Deine Mariner (flu) partnering Selwyn Cobbo in the centres and Corey Oates coming onto the wing in perhaps his final NRL game.

Jaiyden Hunt (hand) and Fletcher Baker (knee) come into the run-on side with Kobe Hetherington (head knock) returning on the bench.

Minor premiers Melbourne welcome back most of their big guns fresh off a Round 26 rest however Ryan Papenhuyzen (leg) will not play.

Sua Fa’alogo starts in the No.1 jersey whilst Xavier Coates (hamstring) has been named among the reserves in search of his first game in over two months.

The Storm have won 15 of their past 16 against the Broncos.

Campbelltown the scene as Wests Tigers & Eels meet in ‘Spoon Bowl’

The Wests Tigers and Eels face off in an awaited ‘Spoon Bowl’ at Campbelltown on Friday evening.

Solomon Alaimalo drops out for the Wests Tigers with Josh Feledy named in the centres and Junior Tupou shifting out to the wing.

Kelma Tuilagi and Sean Russell come into the side for Parramatta with Jake Tago and Dan Keir making way.

The Eels have won nine of their past 11 against Wests Tigers.

Roosters make trip to Accor for Rabbits clash

Traditional rivals the Rabbitohs and Roosters meet in a Friday night showdown at Accor Stadium.

Jack Wighton (calf) is out for Souths with Dean Hawkins coming into the halves whilst Richie Kennar replaces Fletcher Myers in the backline.

Sam Walker (knee), Brandon Smith (knee), Victor Radley (shoulder) and Daniel Tupou (rest) are out for the Tricolours with Joseph-Aukuso Sua’ali’i and Junior Pauga coming into the backline.

Connor Watson starts at dummy-half with Sandon Smith at halfback and Siua Wong and debutant De La Salle Va’a coming onto the bench.

An Australian Schoolboys rep, Va’a hails from the Toowoomba area and played his junior with the Highfields Eagles before moving to the Roosters last year.

The Roosters have won four of their past five against the Rabbitohs.

Dragons back at Kogarah to face Raiders

The Dragons and Raiders will go at it at Netstrata Jubilee Stadium on Saturday afternoon with both sides in need of a miracle to keep their season alive.

Whichever side wins will be relying on a draw between the Dolphins and Knights in the final game of the season if they are to live to fight another day.

Jacob Liddle (personal reasons) and Moses Suli (knee) return into the run-on side for the Red V.

Suli partners Jack Bird in the centres with Mathew Feagai starting on the wing and Lyhkan King-Togia the five-eighth.

Ryan Couchman (knee), Max Feagai, and Mikaele Ravalawa drop out of the side with Connor Muhleisen, Blake Lawrie, and Raymond Faitala-Mariner coming off the bench.

Veterans Jordan Rapana (cheekbone) and Elliott Whitehead (suspension) are out for the Raiders but Jamal Fogarty (hamstring) and Ethan Strange (calf) return in the halves.

Kaeo Weekes starts at fullback with Trey Mooney coming onto the bench.

The Raiders have won seven of their past nine against the Dragons but have not won at Kogarah since 2004.

5th spot on the line as Dogs host Cowboys

The Cowboys make the trip to Homebush for a Saturday evening showdown against the Bulldogs with the winner moving into fifth on the competition ladder.

Stephen Crichton (suspension) returns for Canterbury to replace Bronson Xerri (suspension) whilst Drew Hutchison replaces Matt Burton (head knock) at five-eighth.

Thomas Mikaele (hamstring) replaces Jaxon Purdue on the interchange in the only change for the Cowboys.

The Cowboys have won six of their past eight against the Bulldogs.

Panthers look to lock up Top 2 finish vs. Titans

Penrith will be able to lock up a second-place finish if they can take down the Titans at BlueBet Stadium on Saturday night.

Scott Sorensen (hamstring) returns for the hosts pushing Luke Garner to the bench and Matt Eisenhuth out of the side.

David Fifita (ankle) is out for the Gold Coast but Keano Kini (cork) comes back in at fullback in place of Jaylan De Groot.

Klese Haas starts in the second row with Jacob Alick and debutant Arama Hau coming onto the pine.

An Australia Schoolboys rep, Hau has come through the Burleigh system and spent last year playing with the Featherstone Rovers in the UK before returning to the QCup this season where he has scored seven tries from 19 appearances.

The Panthers have won nine of their past 10 against the Titans.

Sharks journey to Northern Beaches for Top 8 showdown

The Sea Eagles host the Sharks in a key Sunday afternoon clash at 4 Pines Park.

Tom Trbojevic (shoulder) and Jason Saab (ankle) are unavailable for the hosts with Toluta’u Koula the fullback, Clayton Faulalo coming onto the wing, and Ben Trbojevic joining the bench.

Jesse Ramien (suspension) and Ronaldo Mulitalo (knee) return for Cronulla pushing Dan Atkinson to the bench and Sam Stonestreet and Braden Hamlin-Uele out of the side.

Manly have won eight of their nine clashes at 4 Pines Park this year.

Win & In: Knights host Dolphins in Sunday afternoon belter

McDonald Jones Stadium will be treated to a Sunday afternoon blockbuster between the Knights and Dolphins with the winner set to secure the final postseason spot.

Tyson Frizell (head knock) and Tyson Gamble (hand) are back for Newcastle with Brodie Jones and Tom Cant dropping to the reserves.

Jesse Bromwich (head knock) and Kodi Nikorima (head knock) return for the visitors with Lachlan Huber and Isaiya Katoa making way.

Felise Kaufusi has been named for the Dolphins pending a judiciary visit.

The Dolphins are just two of nine in NSW this season.

Fill In The Form To Get Our NRL News Straight To Your Email For FREE!

• First Name*
• Last Name*
• Email*
• Phone
  This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Δ